(KYIV, UKRAINE) – An estimated 40,000 Russian workers have lost their jobs and more than USD 2 billion (GBP 1.54 billion, EUR 1.84 billion) in inventory has been destroyed as Ukraine’s long range drone campaign against Wildberries distribution centres intensifies across Russia and occupied Crimea.
The ecommerce giant Wildberries announced on Friday that it had frozen loan repayments for small and medium sized businesses after a series of devastating strikes on its warehouse network. Around 88,000 individual merchants began receiving the first tranche of compensation payments for products destroyed during the Ukrainian attacks, the company said.
One Russian merchant showed his compensation statement online. The value of his inventory destroyed in a warehouse fire on 18 July stood at 4.6 million roubles (USD 49,500, GBP 38,100, EUR 45,500). The voluntary payment he received from Wildberries for goods damaged as a result of force majeure totalled 10,687 roubles (USD 115, GBP 89, EUR 106). His stock worth approximately USD 82,000 was compensated with USD 138, a loss of more than 95 percent.
The most recent strike hit a Wildberries distribution centre in Simferopol in occupied Crimea, where the facility burned down completely. Power and internet outages across the peninsula have made documentation of the fire difficult. In St Petersburg, two warehouses were struck simultaneously, with dual fires visible from aircraft taking off from the city’s airport. Satellite imagery later showed one warehouse approximately 50 percent destroyed and another a complete loss.
A drone also targeted a Wildberries facility east of the Urals near Yekaterinburg, more than 2,000 kilometres from Ukraine’s border. The unmanned aerial vehicle struck a car park adjacent to the building rather than the warehouse itself. Video of the incident showed employees were not evacuated before impact, suggesting either Russian authorities failed to detect the incoming drone or the company chose not to alert its workforce.
The campaign has now struck warehouses across multiple Russian regions from St Petersburg to the Urals. An English language Wildberries Bingo board has circulated online tracking which facilities have been hit.
Wildberries had previously advertised itself as a supplier of military equipment for what the Russian dictator Vladimir Putin calls the special military operation. On its website, users could purchase body armour, drones, camouflage and other kit required for service in Ukraine. The company has since disabled this section of its site, which previously returned more than 100,000 search results for military items.
Ukraine’s military television channel Army TV released an eight hour compilation of burning Wildberries facilities, described as relaxing and meditative fire footage in 4K resolution.
Separately, a Ukrainian cruise missile of the Flamingo type struck a critical defence production plant in Kirov, far northeast of Moscow. The factory manufactures air defence missiles for the TOR M2 system and cruise missile types including the KH-101. Satellite imagery confirmed a hole in the roof where the missile penetrated before detonating inside. Reports indicate at least 30 workers were killed and another 80 wounded. There was no air raid siren or evacuation alert. Ukraine’s Firepoint company claimed responsibility and released an eight second clip showing the missile being launched from Ukrainian territory. Footage released by Firepoint.
A drone attack also sparked a fire at the Tumn Oil Refinery in Russia’s Urals region, north of Kazakhstan. Video showed two drones successfully striking the facility. The diesel deep cleaning unit and tank farm were hit. The damage to the hydro treating unit limits the plant’s ability to produce commercial low sulphur diesel. The refinery, located almost 2,000 kilometres from Ukraine’s border, had previously been struck on 20 June.
Ukraine’s maritime drone campaign has now struck more than 200 commercial vessels and inland tankers in the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea. The Russian New Victory bulk carrier was among those attacked by a Firepoint.1 drone. Ukrainian drone forces have now extended operations into the Caspian Sea, striking a vessel used for military cargo transport. Iran confirmed a soldier was killed in the attack.
In occupied Crimea, the entire electrical grid has been destroyed by Ukraine’s Magura drones. Residents report living without electricity, clean water, internet or functioning banks. ATMs are closed and the peninsula now operates on a cash and barter economy. Video showed Russian men siphoning petrol from a parked utility van in the early evening, with fuel spilling as they transferred it into bottles.
On the economic front, Russia’s central bank lowered its key rate to 14 percent while warning of higher inflation. The RGBI government bond index dropped from around 119 points to approximately 110, its lowest level this year. Yields on bonds with maturities longer than ten years climbed to 16.5 percent. By comparison, the United States ten year yield stands at 4.6 percent, Germany at 3.1 percent, the United Kingdom at 5 percent and Japan at 2.8 percent. Russia has halted bond auctions as a government debt selloff complicates budget financing.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said intelligence reports indicate the Russian dictator is preparing conditions for expanding mobilisation after the 20 September Duma elections. In less than seven months this year, 221,000 people have joined Russian armed forces as contract soldiers. During the same period, Russian casualties reached nearly 225,500, including 131,000 killed and almost 93,000 wounded. Frontline medical care in Russian forces was described as catastrophically poor.
Meanwhile, a Russian attack on a hypermarket in Kryvyi Rih killed seven people and injured 58. A Russian jet powered drone struck a post office in Sumy, killing two. In Kherson, Russian shelling destroyed the last remaining chess club and the final boxing gym. A Palau flagged grain ship was hit twice by Russian forces as it departed the port of Odesa for Greece, leaving two sailors missing.
Romanian F-16 fighter jets shot down Russian drones over Romanian territory for three consecutive days. The Romanian president confirmed the engagements, stating that pilots avoid interceptions over populated areas but act when drones cross into farmland zones.
Ukraine’s parliament is in recess, delaying the official appointment of a new defence minister following the dismissal of the previous commander. Protests demanding the reinstatement of former minister Fedorov have continued despite the appointment of a replacement. Italy contacted Fedorov with a job offer the day after his dismissal, joining EU countries and private corporations reportedly willing to offer tens of millions of dollars for his services.
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